Thoughts on the Chevy Volt

Drove the Chevy Volt yesterday and a couple people asked what I thought of it so here you go (originally a reply to my status):

Size and general niceness seemed like a higher tier Civic. The touch screen interface was a nice touch (although I would expect nothing less from a $41,000 car.) The only interior gripe would be that the back seat is a little small and the seats are quite high (you sit on top of the back of the battery pack) so not a ton of headroom for me. It only seats two in the back so at least you have enough room laterally. It is quick off the line, feels planted and decently nimble in the corners. Nothing like the jumpy and floaty feeling you sometimes get in the Prius. That's probably because of the considerably larger battery and heavier car. The silence when driving around town is fantastic and again the cabin is nice and insulated and well appointed especially for a smallish Chevy.

All in I think they have done a good job making compromises addressing the concerns about the range of electric cars (real or perceived) with the serial hybrid system. This is a car that could be used as your only car in super efficient and quiet electric mode in daily use (if you drive like most of us do less than 40 miles a day) and then you can fill it up and drive to Tahoe/Maine/New York/Yosemite/Canada, whatever constitutes a road trip for you.

Only time and sales figures will tell what the rest of the country thinks about it and if anyone not already in the market for a hybrid will even consider it. I think it is very interesting and dare I say it cool from a technology standpoint. That's a pretty impressive thing to say about a car made by GM.

That went on longer than I thought but there are my thoughts.

flag.in.need

After breakfast this morning Rob and I noticed just how sad the flag in our front yard looks. Probably should replace it.

Now to look up flag disposal protocol.

I am also quite fond of the fake flowers planted at the base.

nice.to.know

Heading.home

Saw this on my way to the car today.

Off I go to CA...

Off I go to CA...

tickets.purchased

I'm heading down to NYC on Wednesday and I have my tickets! It's been too long and I am taking the train, which will be a first. I am hoping to get to do some grading on the train and avoid the whole tense drive from Boston to NY.

spring.fever

The high today is only in the 60's and with the breeze you can't exactly call this warm. Being the adopted New Englander that I am and a certified "white person" I am maximizing my opportunity to be outside on this spring day. To be fair I also really enjoyed wearing my shorts to work on Friday with highs in the 70's! My Dad, of course, still calls to remind me that it is, "76 and sunny at Calafia Beach and the carne asada burrito is delicious". At least I got to call him for once and remind him that I was outside enjoying spring while he was still at work (one of the benefits to the time zone thing). The warmth and sunlight has brought me out of doors and I am about to take my first vacation since Christmas. Ahh, the power of the change of seasons.

sunday.afternoon

middle.of.july

The idea that the fourth is long gone and the start of school at the end of August is fast approaching is almost paralyzing some moments. Still onward I press. I am working nights this week and I can only describe the experience as confusing. As I look at the clock now shortly after 4pm it is impossible to really understand that I will be awake 12 hours from now heading into the last hour of an 8 hour worknight. At least I have the work I say to myself when I pull up into the driveway after the sun is up and wave to my roommate just heading out to work. OK, so I didn't actually wave and he was actually already on his way to work but this is a more poetic image. I suppose I should figure out a way to sleep all day and work all night but is no way to spend a summer. Is it?

optometry?

Almost as a way to remind myself I say this now. I am planning on becoming an optometrist. The road is long and not entirely smooth and yet my heart is filled with excitement. What does the future hold for me and those around me? "God knows the plans he has for me..." Here goes the next step.

map.to.your.head

"I need a map of your head translated into English so I can learn to not make you frown."
- Clean (Make Yourself) - Incubus

That line always makes me laugh and then think about how true it is that we just don't really understand what goes on in the minds of the people around us. He is singing about the mind of a woman but I think it applies in a much more general way. There is so much that we don't understand and most of it seems to be trapped in the minds of the people around us. How much more do we wish we had a map to the mind of someone who knows all and understands the whys and hows for every action and circumstance in our lives.

the.low.fare.customer

In recent years the "low fare" airline has come to dominate the airline industry news. As it turns out this has had several consequences. The most obvious result is the current affordability of air travel for most middle class families and individuals. That has drastically changed the demographics of the passengers. Certainly the middle class families that saved to fly and see Grandma seem to make up a large portion of the flying public today and their frequency of travel has increased. Now the groups who would have never considered the ability to fly will save up and fly to visit Grandma. This has intensified the number of angry passengers who feel that they are paying good money and deserve something. Don't believe me? Just watch "Airline" on A&E with their coverage of Southwest passengers. Southwest is of course the airline that pioneered the low fare, no-frills, airline. They have maintained profitability where others have failed but air travel will never be the same. You can always tell which people fly often and know that this time they will have to put up with the insanity the "low fare" creates.

Some might say that it is far too easy to split people into groups and we are certainly all guilty of classification based on preconceived notions. I for one am grateful for the low fare trend especially when it come to convenient and reasonably priced travel between Boston, Long Beach, Oakland, and Washington DC. Those just so happen to be the cities I travel to. I don't know if that is because JetBlue flies there or if I want to fly there and JetBlue has obliged.

Speaking of JetBlue, there is an airline that gets what today's price conscious but feature focused consumer wants. I am loyal for now. The only thing that could sway me is the launch of Virgin America (that assumes of course that I can afford to fly them).

no.april.fools

Here I am on April 4th sitting in the only Starbucks I can really stand to spend time in watching the snow fall. San Diego sounds better and better every minute.

carne.asada.bol

So little sister, this is for you...



It actually saddens me that life in Boston has turned Chipotle into a delicious Mexican treat. I suppose that is what happens when you can't get the real thing.

well.that's.how.it.goes

I just had a conversation about the mid to late 90's trend of using no spaces, no capitals, and straight lines as a design aesthetic. That got me to thinking about this blog (neglected since last summer though it may be) and the way I have designed it. I suppose the holdover from the 95-99 design style stems from the fact that the last time I really designed anything was during high school and specifically for LHHS MUN and a particular square program and other documents. We all thought they were fantastic (and I might add that the current LHHS MUN design is certainly inferior, regardless of taste) and I still think it was. The logos, the promotional videos, the over the top production values (ok, so production value may be pushing it...) and the assurance that we were on top of our game.

The years have passed (only two more until my 10 year reunion) and the confidence and ease have morphed into a cynicism and resignation to the daily grind. Sure I am far more confident that I can meet and handle myself in the urban social situations I encounter but the creativity and belief that everything was possible has wanned and doubts abound. I often wonder if I can make ends meet (interesting turn of phrase that is), what the future holds, will I lose my hair, what about my closest friends?

Don't get me wrong, these questions don't always consume my thoughts but they are there and from time to time demand attention. I am forced to comment, if only to myself what I truly believe. That there is a hope and a future. That regardless of situation there are still options. Even if I do lose my hair I can still have people in my life that I love and care about and who return the favor.

How can I be sure what makes this possible and why do I even bother? Ah, there is the rub. On my own it does look hopeless, a never ending descent into cynicism and depression. Am I alone, hardly! Do I know all the answers? No. Do I believe that there are answers? Yes. Nothing in my life has confirmed that there are answers (even when I don't see them right away - or ever) than all the upheaval and change that has happened since those heady days at LHHS. Hard times? Naturally. Happy times? There have been some of those too. Confusion, despair, hope, fear, love, hate...? Of course. All through that I have to say that the freedom to ask questions that I think I should already understand the answer to is more of a gift than I am worthy to receive.

Well, that's how it goes...

family.photo.day

Well now that I am back in Boston I am looking through the pictures from my trip and there it was... a picture of the sunset that we looked at while we had our traditional beach family photo taken. What a nice place to spend the summer...

old.school.video.fun

I recently got a new computer and decided to go through all of the video I shot when I was in school to see if there was anything fun I could do with it. Here are the first fruits of that labor.

illegal.fireworks

As I sat on my parents roof to see not one but three professional fireworks displays (Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, and Aliso Viejo - for those who care) I was treated to another fireworks display. This display was so close I could feel and smell it. Why, you ask? Well that is just what happens when the next-door neighbors decide to fire off some illegal fireworks for the kids.

Now don't even get me started on the whole illegal fireworks thing. All of Orange County has a fireworks ban and as far as I can tell all of the cities around here have outlawed everything to the point of not even allowing sparklers for the children. I grew up here and am used to only having the occasional opportunity to fire off some good stuff (when I was a lad or when I am out of state somewhere like The South or Midwest) but no sparklers. Apparently the message we are sending is that the celebration of our nations freedom and history is best left in the hands of Professionals and I thought that we wanted to raise Americans who can take the responsibility of their freedom into their own hands and never be satisfied with the way things are and always strive for a better future.

day.at.the beach

Treasure Island beach in South Laguna. Yeah it was a beautiful day and I understand why everyone is constantly trying to move here. Images like this really remind me of the beauty in the world around me and I just wish I knew how to appreciate it in all that I do. Wow!

This one is for all of you stuck in the muggy weather Boston has been so fortunate to receive this past week.

slingin'.and.slopin'

What has Ryan been up to the first week of his vacation here in Southern California?

That's right, I helped my dad paint a house in Corona Del Mar. I guess some people would find this odd since I am supposedly on holiday right now (that's correct, I said holiday). In reality there is little I enjoy more that being outside on a sunny summer day near the beach spending time talking about life with my dad. I have to throw in a little bit of thankfulness that my dad and I have the relationship we do. I guess the years of haircuts, paint jobs, and Flamin' Hot Dorritos and Coke developed a bond that I really value and has affected my life in ways I will continue to discover as I continue to live.